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The Asian PostThu, 21 Mar 2019 10:39:19 +0000en-GBhourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.6Two British universities evacuated due to suspicious packageshttp://theasianpost.co.uk/two-british-universities-evacuated-due-to-suspicious-packages/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/two-british-universities-evacuated-due-to-suspicious-packages/#respondThu, 07 Mar 2019 12:20:36 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=45802LONDON: Police evacuated buildings at two British universities on Wednesday after receiving reports of suspicious packages, a day after parcel bombs were sent to two airports and London’s busiest train station. Police in eastern England said they had put a cordon in place at the University of Essex and evacuated some buildings after receiving a ...

Police in eastern England said they had put a cordon in place at the University of Essex and evacuated some buildings after receiving a call about a suspect package. (Photo: Reuters)

LONDON: Police evacuated buildings at two British universities on Wednesday after receiving reports of suspicious packages, a day after parcel bombs were sent to two airports and London’s busiest train station.

Police in eastern England said they had put a cordon in place at the University of Essex and evacuated some buildings after receiving a call about a suspect package. The bomb squad had been called in.

In Scotland, the University of Glasgow also said several buildings had been shut and classes cancelled after a suspicious package was found in the mailroom.

Police had advised the buildings should be closed for the rest of the day but no further information was available on the nature of the package.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/two-british-universities-evacuated-due-to-suspicious-packages/feed/0Shraddha Shoots For The First Time In Londonhttp://theasianpost.co.uk/shraddha-shoots-for-the-first-time-in-london/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/shraddha-shoots-for-the-first-time-in-london/#respondWed, 20 Feb 2019 18:06:53 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=45072BOLLYWOOD: Shraddha Kapoor who has been on trips with friends and family to London is now shooting for the first time in the city for her upcoming dance flick. Shraddha Kapoor is running a hectic schedule and is leaving no stone unturned in gearing up for Street Dancer. Currently in London, Shraddha is on a ...

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/shraddha-shoots-for-the-first-time-in-london/feed/0Pregnant Bangladeshi-British schoolgirl Who Joined ISIS Says She’d “Do Anything” To Come Homehttp://theasianpost.co.uk/pregnant-bangladeshi-british-schoolgirl-who-joined-isis-says-shed-do-anything-to-come-home/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/pregnant-bangladeshi-british-schoolgirl-who-joined-isis-says-shed-do-anything-to-come-home/#respondSat, 16 Feb 2019 19:27:45 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=44864LONDON: A pregnant Bangladeshi-British teenager schoolgirl, who escaped from London in 2015 to join ISIS in Syria, says she is not the same “silly” girl now, but wants to return to the UK as she is worried about the health of her unborn child. Shamima Begum, 15, was one of three British schoolgirls who ran ...

LONDON: A pregnant Bangladeshi-British teenager schoolgirl, who escaped from London in 2015 to join ISIS in Syria, says she is not the same “silly” girl now, but wants to return to the UK as she is worried about the health of her unborn child.

Shamima Begum, 15, was one of three British schoolgirls who ran away from their homes in the UK in 2015 to be jihadi brides, causing much concern in the country on the impact of online radicalisation, especially among the youth.

Speaking from a refugee camp in Syria, Begum, now 19, has lost two children, told the Times newspaper that she was nine months pregnant and wanted to return to the UK for her baby.

She said she remained scared her unborn baby would become ill in the refugee camp after she fled ISIS’ last remaining enclave in Baghuz, eastern Syria.

“That’s why I really want to get back to Britain because I know it will be taken care of – health-wise, at least,” she said.

She said she should be giving birth “any day now”. “I’ll do anything required just to be able to come home and live quietly with my child.”

Begum said she had two other children who died in infancy from malnutrition and illness.

Begum and two of her fellow Bethnal Green academy students, Kadiza Sultana and Amira Abase, made headlines when they flew from Gatwick to Turkey in February 2015, then entered Syria.

Begum and Abase were both 15, while Sultana, another Bangladeshi-British, was 16. They had told their parents they were simply going out for the day. Begum said Sultana was killed in an air strike on Raqqa, the stronghold of the ISIS.

But Begum expressed no regrets about escaping from the UK.

“I’m not the same silly little 15-year-old schoolgirl who ran away from Bethnal Green four years ago,” she said.

“I don’t regret coming here,” she said.

After arriving in Raqqa, she stayed at a house with other newly arrived brides-to-be, she told the Times.

“I applied to marry an English-speaking fighter between 20 and 25 years old,” she said.

Ten days later she married a 27-year-old Dutch man who had converted to Islam.

She has been with him since then, and the couple escaped from Baghuz – the group’s last territory in eastern Syria – two weeks ago.

Begum said her husband who had fought for ISIS, surrendered to Syrian fighters allied to the US- supported Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) weeks ago and that she had not seen him since.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/pregnant-bangladeshi-british-schoolgirl-who-joined-isis-says-shed-do-anything-to-come-home/feed/0Irrfan Khan landed back after treatment in Londonhttp://theasianpost.co.uk/irrfan-khan-landed-back-after-treatment-in-london/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/irrfan-khan-landed-back-after-treatment-in-london/#respondWed, 13 Feb 2019 17:35:56 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=44729BOLLYWOOD: Irrfan Khan who had been away from the reel life, getting treatment for a rare tumour in London, landed back in Mumbai with buzz suggesting that Hindi Medium 2 would be going on floors soon. As per the latest hearsay, the 52-year-old Blackmail actor is back in the B-Town from London where he had ...

BOLLYWOOD: Irrfan Khan who had been away from the reel life, getting treatment for a rare tumour in London, landed back in Mumbai with buzz suggesting that Hindi Medium 2 would be going on floors soon.

As per the latest hearsay, the 52-year-old Blackmail actor is back in the B-Town from London where he had been getting treated for his rare tumour. However, it still remains unsure what the actor is up to back home.

According to some reports the actor is currently admitted at a hospital getting treatment while others claim that he has returned home to kick start the filming process of his upcoming film Hindi Medium 2.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/irrfan-khan-landed-back-after-treatment-in-london/feed/0Dua Lipa promises new album this yearhttp://theasianpost.co.uk/dua-lipa-promises-new-album-this-year/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/dua-lipa-promises-new-album-this-year/#respondFri, 18 Jan 2019 07:31:23 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=43274LONDON: Dua Lipa is determined to release her second album this year. The 23-year-old singer – who released her self-titled debut LP in 2017 – is planning to ”work really hard” in the recording studio to bring out some ”fun stuff” for her fans. Asked her rules for 2019, she told Rolling Stone magazine: ”Working ...

LONDON: Dua Lipa is determined to release her second album this year. The 23-year-old singer – who released her self-titled debut LP in 2017 – is planning to ”work really hard” in the recording studio to bring out some ”fun stuff” for her fans. Asked her rules for 2019, she told Rolling Stone magazine: ”Working really hard to get my new album out. Those are the only rules that I’m gonna be living by. I’m just going to be in the studio making sure that I come back with some fun stuff for everyone.”–DM

The ‘IDGAF’ hit maker has promised her lyrics will be just as ”honest” as ever because she thinks that’s why people have connected with her music.

She said: ”I’ve learned that just by being honest and speaking my truth, I guess it hits home with some people – just like it does with me.”

The ‘New Rules’ hit maker – who was born in London but moved back to Pristina in Kosovo when she was 11 – enjoyed using ”different sounds and different feelings” in her first album and will be doing the same on her next record.

She said: ”All people listened to in Kosovo was hip-hop. So after listening to pop and British rock while I was growing up, my first concert was Method Man and Redman, because they were the only people that came to Pristina.

”My album – I guess it’s a pop album, but it’s so diverse, because it comes from so many different and inspirations. So hip-hop has played a big role in that. I just want to be able to play with different sounds and different feelings at the same time.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/dua-lipa-promises-new-album-this-year/feed/0Priyanka-Nick share photos from their Caribbean vacationhttp://theasianpost.co.uk/priyanka-nick-share-photos-from-their-caribbean-vacation/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/priyanka-nick-share-photos-from-their-caribbean-vacation/#respondSat, 12 Jan 2019 07:31:12 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=42971BOLLYWOOD: Priyanka Chopra and husband Nick Jonas are having a perfect romantic getaway in the Caribbean islands. After celebrating Christmas in London and ringing in the New Year with family and close friends in picturesque Switzerland, the lovey-dovey couple is now spending some quality time in the Caribbean. View this post on Instagram ...

Nick and Priyanka had a grand wedding at Jodhpur’s Umaid Bhawan Palace on December 1 and 2 with their friends and family members in attendance. The Christian ceremony took place on December 1 and the Hindu ceremony was held on December 2.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/priyanka-nick-share-photos-from-their-caribbean-vacation/feed/0Two arrests over London airport drone chaos as flights resumehttp://theasianpost.co.uk/two-arrests-over-london-airport-drone-chaos-as-flights-resume/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/two-arrests-over-london-airport-drone-chaos-as-flights-resume/#respondWed, 26 Dec 2018 12:44:58 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=42063GATWICK AIRPORT: Two people were arrested in connection with the “criminal use of drones” at London Gatwick Airport, police said Saturday, after three days of disruption affected tens of thousands of passengers during the pre-Christmas getaway. Drones were first sighted hovering around Britain’s second-busiest air hub on Wednesday, grinding the runway to a standstill and ...

GATWICK AIRPORT: Two people were arrested in connection with the “criminal use of drones” at London Gatwick Airport, police said Saturday, after three days of disruption affected tens of thousands of passengers during the pre-Christmas getaway.

Drones were first sighted hovering around Britain’s second-busiest air hub on Wednesday, grinding the runway to a standstill and causing chaos for more than 120,000 people.

“As part of our ongoing investigations into the criminal use of drones which has severely disrupted flights in and out of Gatwick Airport, Sussex Police made two arrests just after 10:00pm (2200 GMT) on December 21,” the force’s Superintendent James Collis said.

“Every line of enquiry will remain open to us until we are confident that we have mitigated further threats to the safety of passengers.”

Police urged passengers and the public to remain vigilant around the airport, south of London, and report any further sightings.

Flights resumed on Friday after a new drone sighting briefly forced planes to be grounded as a “precautionary measure”, a Gatwick spokesman said.

Sussex Police said officers had been using “a range of tactics” to hunt for the mystery drone operators and “build resilience to detect and mitigate further incursions” from the device.

The dangers posed by drones include the possibility of a device smashing into a passenger plane or being sucked up into an engine where its highly flammable lithium battery could cause a catastrophe.

– Widespread disruption –

Passengers, many trying to get home for Christmas or to start their holidays, were advised to check the status of their flights before travelling to the airport.

On Friday morning a Gatwick spokesman said 91 of the day’s 412 scheduled arrivals had been cancelled, while 64 of 371 scheduled departures had also been scrapped.

The army was called in on Thursday to offer support, with the defence ministry deploying what was described only as specialist equipment.

“There are a range of measures which are there today which should give passengers confidence that they are safe to fly,” Transport Secretary Chris Grayling told the BBC on Friday.

Government officials held an emergency meeting to discuss the situation.

– Cat and mouse chase –

There had been more than 50 sightings of the device or devices since the first reports at 9:00 pm (2100 GMT) on Wednesday and shooting down the drone had been considered as an option, said Jason Tingley of Sussex Police.

“We will do what we can to take that drone out of the sky and remove that disruption,” he said.

Justin Burtenshaw, head of armed policing for Sussex and Surrey said on Thursday: “Each time we believe we get close to the operator, the drone disappears. When we look to reopen the airfield the drone reappears”.

Sussex Police Assistant Chief Constable Steve Barry said officers were working on the theory there was more than one drone.

Before Friday’s sighting at 5:10 pm (1710 GMT), a drone had last been spotted at around 10:00 pm (2200 GMT) on Thursday.

– ‘We’re in limbo’ –

Some 10,000 passengers were affected on Wednesday night, and a further 110,000 who had been due to either take off or land at the airport on 760 flights Thursday.

Mike, from London, had his flight cancelled on Friday and will miss his connection to Ghana.

“We’re in limbo. We don’t actually know when we’ll be flying out at all because we haven’t been promised a rescheduled flight, we haven’t been promised any further information, any compensation. Nothing at all.”

Darcis, 32, who was supposed to arrive from Milan on Thursday and had to sleep at the airport, said: “I cannot understand why such a small thing can cause an international airport like Gatwick (to close). They should be ready for these things. I really don’t understand what we can do.”

The drama dominated Britain’s newspapers on Friday, with speculation that an eco-activist was responsible.

Gatwick, around 30 miles (50 kilometres) south of the British capital, is the eighth-busiest airport in Europe and sits behind Mumbai as the world’s busiest single-runway air hub.

Inbound flights were diverted to other airports, including Paris, while passengers waiting to take off faced gruelling delays.

Under a new British law, drones cannot be flown near aircraft or within a kilometre of an airport, or at an altitude of over 400 feet (122 metres).

Violators face up to five years in prison for endangering an aircraft.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/two-arrests-over-london-airport-drone-chaos-as-flights-resume/feed/0British Airways returns to Pakistan after 10 yearshttp://theasianpost.co.uk/british-airways-returns-to-pakistan-after-10-years/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/british-airways-returns-to-pakistan-after-10-years/#respondThu, 20 Dec 2018 09:20:14 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=41790LONDON/ISLAMABAD: British Airways, the United Kingdom’s national carrier, has announced to restart flights to Pakistan after ten years. “British Airways returns to Pakistan. Direct flights from London Heathrow to Islamabad’s new airport start in June. A further boost to links between the UK and Pakistan – especially on trade and investment,” said British High Commissioner ...

LONDON/ISLAMABAD: British Airways, the United Kingdom’s national carrier, has announced to restart flights to Pakistan after ten years.

“British Airways returns to Pakistan. Direct flights from London Heathrow to Islamabad’s new airport start in June. A further boost to links between the UK and Pakistan – especially on trade and investment,” said British High Commissioner Thomas Drew in a video on Twitter.

British Airways returns to Pakistan. Direct flights from London Heathrow to Islamabad’s new airport start in June. A further boost to links between the UK and Pakistan – especially on trade and investment. @British_Airwayspic.twitter.com/TGEjopOVx1

“The links between Britain and Pakistan are already extraordinary – from commerce, culture and cricket to people, politics and education. But I see this launch as a vote of confidence in the future of these links – and, ofcourse, the reflection of the great improvement in security situation in Pakistan in recent years,” he added.

Thomas Drew said the return of British Airways will give particular boost to our trade and investment links. British Airways itself would join a growing list of British companies already doing business in Pakistan. It will also allow more people from the UK to discover, like I have, quite what a beautiful country Pakistan is.

“I look forward to using the service myself when the flights start in June,” the British High Commissioner said.

The route will launch as a three-per-week- service, operated on a three-class Boeing 787 Dreamliner – British Airways’ newest long-haul fleet that is 20 per cent more fuel efficient than other aircraft and features larger windows, mood lighting and the latest inflight entertainment.

Return fares start from 499 GBP for World Traveller, 773 GBP for World Traveller Plus and 1,799 GBP for Club World.

British Airways official also held a press conference along with Prime Minister’s Special Assistant on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Zulfi Bukhari.

“British Airways coming back after a decade shows you where we were and how far we ve come,” Bukhari said, terming the announcement “groundbreaking”.

“This is a huge achievement for where we [Pakistan] want to be. It s a huge step for this government that it has given foreign investors that security to come back.”

The officials of the British High Commission termed restoration of peace in Pakistan as a ‘good omen.’

Thanking British Airways for reviving its flight operation, Army spokesperson Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor said the dividends of decades long struggle of Pakistani nation and its security forces for restoration of peace and stability in the country are on the way.

British Airways suspended flight operation in Pakistan in September 2008 after the attack on Marriot hotel in Islamabad.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/british-airways-returns-to-pakistan-after-10-years/feed/0Emily Blunt double nominee at SAG Awardshttp://theasianpost.co.uk/emily-blunt-double-nominee-at-sag-awards/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/emily-blunt-double-nominee-at-sag-awards/#respondFri, 14 Dec 2018 05:23:24 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=41435HOLLYWOOD: Emily Blunt is up for two prizes at next month’s Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, the nominations for which have just been announced. The British star is up for the guild’s best film actress prize for Mary Poppins Returns, which is having its European premiere later in London. She is also up for a ...

HOLLYWOOD: Emily Blunt is up for two prizes at next month’s Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards, the nominations for which have just been announced.

The British star is up for the guild’s best film actress prize for Mary Poppins Returns, which is having its European premiere later in London.

She is also up for a supporting actor award for horror film A Quiet Place, which husband John Krasinski directed. Christian Bale and Olivia Colman are among the other British nominees. The former is shortlisted for his role as former US vice president Dick Cheney in the political satire Vice.

The latter is up for the best actress award for The Favourite, for which Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone are also recognised.

Hugh Grant, Joseph Fiennes and Sir Anthony Hopkins are among the British talents in contention for the guild’s television awards.

Stone also receives a second nomination here for Netflix series Maniac, while Krasinski gets his own nod for acting in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan.

Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga are both nominated for their acting in A Star is Born, which is also up for outstanding performance by a cast.

Black Panther, Black Klansman, Bohemian Rhapsody and Crazy Rich Asians are also shortlisted for the SAG equivalent to a best picture award. The Screen Actors Guild is an American labour union that represents performers in media around the world.

It was founded in 1933 in an effort to eliminate exploitation of Hollywood actors who were being forced into multi-year contracts with major film studios – many of which were known for dictating the public and private lives of performers.

The SAG Awards have been held since 1995 and is often seen as an indicator of success at the Academy Awards, so if these nominations are anything to go by, maybe the Brits will have a bit of luck on their side come Oscars season.

The 25th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards will be presented in West Hollywood on 27 January.

]]>http://theasianpost.co.uk/emily-blunt-double-nominee-at-sag-awards/feed/0Hailee praises Bumblebee shoothttp://theasianpost.co.uk/hailee-praises-bumblebee-shoot/
http://theasianpost.co.uk/hailee-praises-bumblebee-shoot/#respondFri, 07 Dec 2018 07:21:39 +0000http://theasianpost.co.uk/?p=41024HOLLYWOOD: Hailee Steinfeld says ‘Bumblebee’ was one of her best experiences ‘’working on a film’’. The 21-year-old actress stars as Charlie Watson in the upcoming ‘Transformers’ prequel – which sees John Cena take on the role as villainous Sector 7 agent Burns – and she found it tough to choose a standout moment from the shoot. Appearing ...

HOLLYWOOD: Hailee Steinfeld says ‘Bumblebee’ was one of her best experiences ‘’working on a film’’.

The 21-year-old actress stars as Charlie Watson in the upcoming ‘Transformers’ prequel – which sees John Cena take on the role as villainous Sector 7 agent Burns – and she found it tough to choose a standout moment from the shoot.

Appearing at the ‘Bumblebee’ fan screening she exclusively told BANG Showbiz: ‘’Well, I don’t know if I could pick a favourite part but it was one of my favourite experiences of working on a film. ‘’There was never a dull moment. Obviously this film is packed with so much action and so much emotion, it was a ride. The whole thing was a ride.’’ Steinfeld praised the film for its balance of exciting action scenes while still featuring real ‘’heart and emotion’’.

She said: ‘’I love that it is that perfect balance of this visually stunning, action packed film and so much heart and emotion – [it’s] the anchor of all of it.

‘’I love that when you watch the film you sorta lose yourself in each world when you’re in it. You sorta forget you’re watching a ‘Transformers’ movie when you’re at home with the family, and then you’re in this ‘Transformers’ world and then you’re in this ‘Transformers’ world and you forget that there’s a family.

‘’There’s just so much going on in this film. It’s so wonderful, and I really do feel like there’s something in it for everyone to find relatable to themselves.’’

She was joined at the event Cine world Leicester Square in London by a host of stars, including ‘X Factor’ champion Dalton Harris, former ‘Apprentice’ star Kurran Pooni, ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ pro Graziano Di Prima and former contestant Charles Venn.